Many of us are asking this question "Will the new online standardized tests be different?" and this post begins to explore where things stand at this point. There are two state coalitions that are designing the new tests, the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) and the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium. For a look at sample questions from both sites and a short discussion on what the "computer enhanced" testing may bring to your classroom click through to the post.

Art Teachers: This was made for y'all. Depending on where you are in your curriculum, pen-and-ink might not be the kind of exercise you'd do as a formal classroom assignment, but it could still be a great way to stretch your students. I know some artists who design a character (an alien? a pumpkin?) or pick a character to draw doing all of the #Inktober prompts. How would you have your alien doing "Swift?" "Squeak?" "Cloud?" "Mysterious?" ...or have them pick a favorite universe to draw in. Harry Potter, Star Wars, Adventure Time -- and have them still do the #Inktober prompts

Not-Art-Teachers: First of all, you should be. I should be. Finding ways to bring art into the classroom is a great way to engage kids who aren't engaged with some of our other go-to tools. But if you're so hooked on your curriculum that the #Inktober list of prompts seems like it would be inappropriate for what you're doing, come up with a list of 31 prompts that are within your curriculum. Connect it to the Bill of Rights. States of Matter. Digestive System. I don't know. Maybe look at the #Inktober list for inspiration, and then find a side door from those prompts into your own content. If 31 days seems excessive, just do it for one week -- see what your students come up with.

Larry Rosen has studied the impact of digital tools and social media on human's attention span for 30 years. He provides some good tips: the brain needs a reset, build stamina to study with tech breaks, get good sleep, minimize alerts, and talk to parents about digital free zones.

Unions are weak. Wage growth is non-existent. Plutocrats have all the power. And yet the myth that education is all we need to finally "fix" poverty persists. AlterNet education editor Jennifer Berkshire talks with historian Harvey Kantor about how the US gave up on the idea of responding to poverty directly, instead making public schools the answer to poverty. Hint: it all starts in the 1960’s with the advent of the Great Society programs. Fast forward to the present and our belief that education can reduce poverty and narrow the nation’s yawning inequality chasm is stronger than ever. And yet our education arms race, argues Kantor, is actually making income inequality worse.

I just finished William Pinar's What is Curriculum Theory, Volume 2. He argues that teachers are responsible for creating an inviting environmenit within which students can learn. Gert Biesta argued the same point. John Dewey is a great place to begin reading about the role of teachers and students.

After years of testing out various talks in the classroom, I finally found a few that always go over well with my high school students. Of course, it has a lot to do with the talks being funny. Who doesn’t like to laugh? But there’s also a deeper meaning and positive message with each that resonates with the students. There is no particular order to this list. They each are awesome in their own right.

The biggest barrier to digital learning for teachers is gaining student access to technology. That's followed by a lack of time during the school day. For administrators, the top concern is providing relevant and effective professional development to their staff, followed by limitations and problems with the technological infrastructure, such as WiFi and security. Overall, across both roles, the main obstacle to integrating technology into the classroom was lack of time and an insufficient number of devices to do so.

"This article explores the uncertainty and anxiety that newcomers to Instructional Design may be faced with during the transition from student to job seeker. It is also a look at the growing positive outlook of Instructional Design from a new perspective."

In addition to literacy strategies, approaches to assessment, and grouping strategies (among many others), knowing the right teaching strategy for the right academic situation may not be a matter of expertise or training, but memory: out of sight, out of mind, yes?

Which makes the following infographic from fortheteachers.org useful.

While it doesn’t offer definitions and explanations for each strategy (it’s an infographic, not a book), and many great strategies are missing (e.g., 3-2-1, exit slip, project-based learning, accountable talk, ask a question, etc.) it does work well as a kind of reminder for what’s possible, even offering categories for each strategy, from progress monitoring (think-pair-share, KWL charts), to Note-Taking (graphic organizers).

There are 87 instructional strategies listed below, but several are repeated across categories, so let’s call it “50+” strategies.

I have been hard at work on this 31-day challenge, and I am so excited to share it with you! Rebecca, a middle school math and science teacher in the bay area, had a fabulous idea for Zero Waste October. It would be full of activities for students and teachers to talk about the global trash problem.

It's similar to Plastic-Free July but focused more on students. Since July is in the summer, it's difficult to get kids involved. When Rebecca reached out to me about crafting a curriculum, I jumped at the chance.

It's inspired by the 30-Day Challenge I created with Andrea from Be Zero, but with a lot of new challenges specifically for students and kids. I really hope you enjoy it!

Grab a copy of the booklet below and save a copy of the calendar. Set it as your phone or tablet background so you can easily keep up.

Putting students in front of a computer and expecting them to have a “quality” education, a principal who has no accreditation as a teacher or a principal, a demand for time and money from mostly low income parents…how would this play out in Queen Anne? But it’s OK for minority students on the south end of…

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